A cryptic crossword expert is uprooted from suburban England to rural Pennsylvania. How will he fare in the land of Aleros, ERAs and Oreos?

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

NYT Wednesday 5/27/09 - Britspeak

This Wednesday New York Times crossword seems to have been compiled just for me. But knowing all the American and British equivalents didn't help much: what really held me up was three little answers - opt, out and cop which took me around 5 minutes at the end. I was convinced I would be able to justify "Friday, notably", but in fact never stood a chance with it; luckily opt-out clauses came to me in the end.

One of my cryptic crosswords in the Listener series was based on a similar idea, which was prescient given that I was destined to emigrate to the US - I won't give too many details as the puzzle has been given a new lease of life in the latest anthology Listener Crosswords: From the Times of London.

60a hubba {When doubled, a wolf's call}. A cause for bemusement then amusement, as I don't think I ever heard "hubba hubba" used in the UK, the wolf whistle or "phwoar!" being a more common way of showing appreciation for someone's appearance. (The wolf in all these references being the seducing, not lupine, variety.)

29d cop {Friday, notably}. This little answer really held me up at the end. I thought I was clever by putting in Man, but that was very counter-productive. I had to get this answer the hard way and then get confirmation from Magdalen that it was right and a reference to Dragnet (which I only know indirectly from spoofs such as Police Squad!).

33d Loeb {Leopold's partner in a sensational 1924 trial}. Well it could only be Loeb, but why?? Leopold and Loeb were University of Chicago students who tried to commit the "perfect" crime by murdering a 14-year-old boy. They were sentenced to life, but Loeb was murdered in prison in 1936. The case was influential on art, being the inspiration for Rope, which was famously filmed by Alfred Hitchcock.

Noteworthy

1a jab {One-two part}. I first thought this "one-two" was something to do with music ... wrong! In boxing lingo, a one-two is a jab followed by a cross.

14a ale {Draft pick?}. An old un' but a good un'.15a Ode On {Keats title starter}. Usually odeon would be "Ancient Greek Theater" or "Popular theater name". John Keats was generous to give us this alternative by writing Ode On Indolence and the like.

38a opt, 30d out {Kind of clause}. Not knowing 29-Down, I got really stuck on these two at the end. Is it fair to clue two crossing answers interdependently like this? I certainly had trouble with it, but then I do know what an opt-out clause is, so maybe it's my bad?

41a TDs {Causes for stadium cheers, for short}. Hey! A football reference I know ... touchdown!

63a Ali {Sacha Baron Cohen character ___ G}. Ali G's comedy is sometimes at the expense of others, but those others sometimes merit being humiliated.

2d aliens {Vulcans and Romulans}. Vulcans and Romulans are alien races from the Star Trek franchise, both conveniently humanoid. We saw the new Star Trek movie over the weekend and found it about as silly as the original series; that is to say, we enjoyed it a lot.

7d go-round {Bout}; 10d mix it up {Have a tussle}. These two idioms seem to go happily together: a go-round is an encounter in a conflict of some kind and to mix it up is to be belligerent verbally or physically.

9d A Boy {Bernstein/Sondheim's "___ Like That"}. A Boy Like That is from Act 2 of West Side Story.

3 comments:

Here's a fun fact: My first husband and I solved that Listener crossword that Ross referred to (which also includes Britspeak & American-speak, not to give too much away) on a transatlantic phone call the summer before we got married. A very apropos puzzle for an American & a Brit to solve together. Henry had to explain to me who "Arcturus" (Ross's nom des mot croises) was. A few months later, I met Ross for the first time. Truly a case of what goes around comes around. Or something...